Hoisting device



May 6, 1958 J. A. TUCKER 2,833,423 I aoxsmxc m-zvrcs Filed Nov. 22, 1954 11 7/1455 flan/52,

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United States Patent HOISTING DEVICE James A. Tucker, Fullerton, Calif.

Application November 22, 1954, Serial No. 470,180

1 Claim. (Cl. 212-61) The present invention relates to a portable hoisting device or gin which is primarily designed to be used in lifting such items as transformers to the top of conventional electric or telephone poles.

It is frequently necessary, in placing and connecting electrical equipment upon poles such as are conven- Fig. 5 is a partial isometric view showing part of the construction employed in securing the hoisting device about a cylindrical pole.

In Fig. 1, of the'drawing, a hoisting device of the present invention is shown in use in hoisting a transformer .12 to the top of a pole 14 to which there is secured a conventional crossbrace 16 in order that the transformer tionally known as telephone poles, to hoist various heavy items, such as transformers, to the top of these poles where they can be mounted upon either the poles themselves or upon cross brackets. This operation is essentially a very diflicult one because of the heavy weight of the various items usually lifted to the top of the pole. It has been necessary to develop various specialized equipment for prior art constructions, of which there are many, by

virtue of the fact that it can be easily and conveniently used so as to maneuver or manipulate a transformer or other similar item at the top of a supporting pole so that such a transformer'or other item may be mounted in any desired location with a minimum of difliculty. With the prior art constructions, there has frequently been a great deal of diificulty in adjusting transformers which have been hoisted into the air to a desired mounting position.

Further objects of the present invention will be apparent in the remainder of this specification and the accompanying claim forming a part of this description. instant invention may be briefly summarized for the purpose of understanding it as involving a hollow cylindrical bearing member; means for mounting this hearing member in any desired position upon a supporting pole; a hollow shaft rotatably carried within said bearing member; an arm secured to said hollow shaft; and pulley means secured to said arm for conveying a rope or cable up through said hollow shaft and said bearing member to an extremity of said arm remote from said shaft, and thence back in a direction generally parallel to the position of said hollow shaft. Perhaps the details of this construction are best apparent with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is an isometric view showing the operation of a hoisting device of the instant invention;

Fig. 2 is a side view of this hoisting device;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken at line 33 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken at line 4-4 of Fig. 2; and

The

12 may be attached to either this crossbrace 16 or to the pole 14. It is best seen in Fig. 2 of the drawing that this hoisting device comprises a hollow cylindrical bearing member 18 having end flanges 20, which bearing member is secured to the pole 14 by mounting means 22. These mounting means comprise brackets 24 secured about the bearing member 18 so that curved sides 26 of these brackets may be conveniently held against the pole 14. Within each of the brackets 24 adjacent the pole 14 there .is formed a slot 28 as is best seen in Fig. 5 of the drawing.

Eachslot 28 is of such dimension as to hold an individual link 30 of a chain 32 so that this chain may be securely attached to the bracket 24 when the chain is passed about the pole 14. The ends of the chains 32 remote from the links 30 are attached as by welding or the like to threaded members 34 which are carried upon threaded shafts 36. These shafts in turn pass through bushings 38 pivotally attached to the brackets 24 at points thereof remote from the slots 28, and'are provided with handles 40 secured by means of pivots 42 to the shafts 36. I

With this construction, it is possible to securely mount the complete hoisting device 10 about the pole l4with a minimum of difiiculty. In so doing, the handles 40 are first turned so as to project the threaded members '34 from the brackets 24 as much as possible. Then, the chains 32 are passed about the pole 14 and individual links there'- of, such as thejlinlts 30, are passed within the slots 28. The handles 40 arethen tightened so as to hold the chains 32 and the entire hoisting device 10 firmly with respect to the pole 14. It is considered obvious from the drawing and this description that the mounting means 22 employed with the invention are essentially adjustable in nature, and may be easily and conveniently used to secure the hoisting device 10 to virtually any sized pole.

Within the bearing member 18 there is located a hollow shaft 44 which is provided with an end collar 46 adapted to bear against either of the end flangesZll.

A hollow arm 48 is secured externally of the bearing member 18 so as to be in communication with the interior of the hollow shaft 44. This arm 48 is preferably curved, as indicated in Fig. 2 of the drawings, so that an end 50 thereof is disposed a substantial distance from the axis of the bearing member 18. It is considered obvious from the drawing that the arm 48 may be rotated with respect to this hearing member 18. The upper edge 52 of the arm 48 is provided with flange means 54 defining a slot 56. A pulley 58 is mounted between these two flange means 54 so as to be capable of rotating in order to carry a rope, cable, or similar article 60, passing through the hollow shaft 44, the bearing member 18, and part of the hollow arm 48 upwards towards a second pulley 62 held between flange-like extensions 64 secured to the end 50 of the hollow arm 48. If desired, a shackle 66 may be secured to the extensions 64 over the pulley 62 in order to prevent undesired dislodgment of the rope 60 from this pulley.

The operation of the hoisting device 10 when secured about a pole 14 is essentially exceedingly simple. The rope 60 is preferably provided with a hook 68 or other similar lifting means in such a manner that this hook may be raised or lowered with respect to the hoisting device 10 by merely pulling on the portion of the rope 60 passing through the bearing member 18 and the hollow shaft 44. Once a transformer or other device has been hoisted in this Patented May 6, 1958 manner, the hollow arm 48, the attached shaft 44 and other members, as indicated above, may be readily rotated so as to locate the article being hoisted in any desired position for mounting, One major advantage of. the instantlconstruction lies in the fact that the rope 60 employed for such hoisting is not kinked or otherwise tangled during such a rotating operation. Further, it is. maintained at all times within the hollow shaft 44 so that it does not interfere with the mounting operation. It is impossible for the rope 60 used with this device to be in the way if an article lifted by means of the hoisting device is being mounted on the same level as this hoisting device. Further, with the construction shown in Fig. 2, there is substantially no chance of the rope strength being lessened due to the use of extremely sharp bends around pulleys.

The hoisting device 10 of the invention is shown in Fig. l as being used together with a conventional block and tackle 70. For the purpose of securing this block-andtackle arrangement to the moisting device 10, a shackle 72 is mounted on a flange-like projection 74 from the inside of thehollow arm 48 adjacent to the end 50. It is considered that the operation of this block and tackle 70 for use in hoisting a transformer or like article is essentially obvious in view of the above discussion.

The instant invention has proved itself commercially at the present time, and is being employed in preference to other more conventional type portable hoisting devices. The hoisting device 10 can be readily mounted and demounted. It is comparatively light in weight and is extremely efficient for the purpose described. With it there is little difiiculty of the ropes getting in the Way, or with ropes losing part of their strength due to extremely sharp bends around pulleys or the like. Further, the hoisting device 10 can be readily demounted so thatit is only necessary for a lineman to handle the bearing member 18 and the mounting means 22 at one time in securing the hoisting device 10 to an appropriate pole. It is substantially immaterial with the invention which end of the bearing member 18 is secured in an upward position inasmuch as both ends of this bearing member are formed identically.

Those skilled in the art will realize that a number of minor modifications may be made within the scope of the instant invention without departing from the essential teachings of it. All such modifications are to be considered as part of the inventive concept insofar as they are defined by the appended claim.

I claim as my invention:

In a portable hoisting device for use atop poles and the like, the combination of: a hollow cylindrical bearing member having flanges at each end thereof; a hollow shaft adapted to be rotatably carried within said bearing member, said shaft having an external collar intermediate the ends of said shaft for hearing against the upper of said end flanges when the lower of said ends of said shaft is carried by said bearing member, the engagement of said collar and said flange preventing further movement of said shaft through said bearing member, said shaft being curved above said collar disposing the upper of said ends out of alignment with said lower end; means defining an opening in said shaft above said collar, said opening being aligned with said lower end of said shaft; a first pulley mounted on said shaft above said opening; a second pulley mounted on said upper end of said shaft for carrying a rope passing upwardly through said lower end of said shaft, thence out through said opening and over said first pulley, and thence over said second pulley and downward substantially parallel to said bearing member; and means for clamping said bearing member against the curved surface of an upright pole with either of said flanges facing upward, said means including a bracket fixed to said bearing member, a bushing secured to one portion of said bracket, a threaded shaft carried by said bushing, means for turning said threaded shaft in said bushing, a threaded member carried by said shaft at a point remote from said bracket, a chain secured to said threaded member, and means defining a slot in an opposite portion of said bracket, said slot being of such dimension as to accommodate a single link of said chain with respect to its narrowest dimension, whereby said single link may he slipped within said slot securing said chain against movement.

References Cited in the file of this. patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 971,686 Michael et a1 Oct. 4, 1910 1,250,424 Brennan Dec. 18, 1917 1,256,688 Hall Feb. 19, 1918 2,029,709 Field Feb. 4, 1936 2,153,803 Jerabek Apr. 11, 1939 2,646,893 Weatherford July 28, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 547,581 Great Britain Sept. 2, 1942 

